I have 6 books planned to read this month. We'll see how that goes since I have family coming to visit and will have less reading time.
Reading with The Mystery Book Club-
A Tarnished Canvas (Lady Darby #13) by Anna Lee Huber
Lady Kiera Darby had planned to spend the
winter practicing her painting, but instead, she must find the flaw in a
killer’s masterpiece when an art auction results in one participant’s
final bid.…
March 1833. Kiera and her husband, Sebastian
Gage, have decided to settle in Edinburgh for the winter with their
infant daughter. This also allows Kiera to enjoy long hours painting in
her studio, making progress on the portraits she soon hopes to unveil in
her own exhibit. She’s thrilled when she receives an invitation to the
auction of the late Lord Eldin’s coveted art collection, and she and
Gage eagerly accept. When the floor collapses beneath the gathering,
killing one of their fellow bidders, Kiera and Gage are lucky to escape
with their lives.
Within days it becomes apparent that what at
first seemed to be a terrible accident is actually something far more
nefarious. Someone deliberately compromised the integrity of the
structure, though the police are unsure of the culprit’s aim. Sergeant
Maclean requests Kiera and Gage’s assistance in figuring out who would
wish to harm the bidders. As they dig deeper, it becomes increasingly
apparent that the victim was not the killer’s intended target . . . and
that Kiera was lured to the auction deliberately. Kiera and Gage must
utilize all their resources to unveil a monster willing to risk the
lives of dozens of bystanders to achieve their ends. But they’re on the
verge of making a dire miscalculation. For one of the cleverest tricks
in a painter’s repertoire is the art of misdirection, and their eyes
have been drawn far from the gravest danger.
Missing Angel (Agent Tori Hunter #4) by Roger Stelljes
Isabella pedals her bright red bike on the
familiar route home, admiring her charm bracelet catching the light. But
half an hour later, she is nowhere to be seen. All her frantic parents
find is an angel-shaped charm discarded on the sidewalk…
When
twelve-year-old Isabella Farner disappears, Agent Tori Hunter races to
the scene. Witnesses—including her partner’s son who was biking home
with Isabella—saw a man throw her into the back of his blue van and
speed away. Terrified that a child she loves like her own might be next,
Tori knows every second counts in the hunt for the missing girl.
Isabella’s
distraught parents insist no-one would want to harm their perfect
family. But soon a photo of Isabella looking terrified is discovered,
holding a copy of today’s newspaper. Why would the Farners conceal
information about their own missing daughter? And what else do they have
to hide?
Then, while searching a stretch of road where the van
was last seen, Tori finds a tiny clue: an angel-shaped charm. Isabella
was here. But what chance is there that she is being kept alive?
Unable
to trust Isabella’s parents, as Tori closes in on the truth she
realises someone already known to police must be involved: and she
herself is in terrible danger. But even if Tori makes the ultimate
sacrifice, will it be enough to find this innocent girl before she
disappears forever?
Reading for NetGalley-
We Met Like This by Kasie West
Beloved author Kasie West's sparkling,
seductive adult rom-com debut about a hopeless romantic falling for the
one man she never expected. This deluxe paperback features beautiful
designed edges; order now to receive it while supplies last!
Can a swipe right turn into swept away?
Margot
Hart is a hopeless romantic. That’s why she wants to be a literary
agent—to help bring romance books to the world. It’s also why she hates
dating apps with all her romance loving soul. She wants her own love
story to be just as much fun as the books she reads—a mixed up coffee
order, a mistaken identity. She’s not going to tell the story that she
swiped right on future husband’s shirtless pic for the rest of her life.
The
problem is that her most consistent relationship over the last several
years is with Oliver, a guy she keeps rematching with on the apps.
They’ve only been on one date and it was a disaster…well, until the make
out session in the car before parting ways. But, she keeps reminding
herself, a make out session does not a relationship make. And so there
will not be a date two regardless of how witty their app banter is.
When
Margot gets fired from her job on the same day she meets Oliver again,
her life becomes a veritable shit show. Her dream career is dying right
before her eyes, and Oliver thinks she’s interested in only one thing: a
repeat of the hot make out session they had three years ago so she can
get him out of her system. And maybe that is all she wants from him,
because she and Oliver are definitely not compatible—he doesn’t hit the
snooze button, he runs five miles every morning, he reads nonfiction,
and worst of all, she didn’t meet him in cute way! But in her scramble
to keep her dream career alive, by opening her own agency, Oliver is
there with his golden retriever energy, more steady and helpful than any
man she’s ever dated. Just when she thinks she’s overcome her app bias,
she realizes that maybe it’s not her who’s holding back, but him. And
his reasons are more than she bargained for.
Kasie West's romantic and sexy adult debut is full of witty banter, meet cutes gone awry and, ultimately, true love.
Tentative—may end up getting pushed to October.
Falling in a Sea of Stars (Green Rider #8) by Kristen Britain
On her days-long
journey home, Karigan Gladheon trudges through the immense forest called
Green Cloak. She is leaving school, or, more accurately, she has been
asked to leave. "Suspended indefinitely," the dean said. And for what?
Challenging and thrashing Timas Mirwell in the practice ring. Karigan
felt no remorse when she stood over the heir of the lord-governor of
Mirwell province, her wooden practice sword at his throat. He had
humiliated her, the daughter of a "mere" merchant, since the first day
of school. But now, as she faces the long road home, hoping to arrive in
Corsa before the dean's letter does, she wonders if she should just
hire herself out on a merchant barge as her father did and stay away for
good. She has too much pride, too hot a temper, and a penchant for
danger - a life of travel, adventure and commerce will undoubtedly suit
her just as it has her father.
But before Karigan's ponderings can
become a definite plan, her thoughts are interrupted by the clattering
of hooves, as a galloping horse bursts from the woods in an explosion of
branches, the rider slumped over his mount's neck, impaled by two
black-shafted arrows. As the young rider lies dying on the road, he
tells Karigan that he is a Green Rider, one of the legendary messengers
of the king, and that he bears a "life and death" message for King
Zachary in his horse's satchel. He begs Karigan to carry his message,
warning her not to read it, and when she reluctantly agrees, he makes
her swear on his sword to deliver the message "for love of her country."
As he bestows upon her the golden winged-horse brooch which is the
symbol of his office, she seems to hear the ghostly sound of great wings
beating the air, of silver-shod hooves galloping...and of invisible
lips murmuring, "Welcome rider..." But beside her on the road, the
messenger only whispers, "Beware the shadow man!" with his dying breath.
This
promise given to a dying man changes Karigan's life forever. Pursued by
unknown assassins, following a path only her horse seems to know, and
accompanied by the silent specter of the original messenger, she herself
becomes a legendary Green Rider - the magic of this office transferred
to her with the original rider's brooch. But what is happening in her
land that requires a life or death message for the king? What does the
message contain that is so vital someone is willing to kill for it? And
who is "the shadow man?"
Pick it for me book-
The Stranger in the Mirror by Liv Constantine
Addison's about to get married, but she's not
looking forward to the big day. It's not her fiancé; he's a wonderful
man. It's because Addison doesn't know who she really is. A few years
ago, a kind driver found her bleeding next to a New Jersey highway and
rescued her. While her physical wounds healed, Addison's memory never
returned. She doesn't know her real name. Or how she ended up injured on
the side of a road. Or why she can't shake the notion that she may have
done something very, very bad...
In a posh home in the Boston
suburbs, Julian tries to figure out what happened to his loving, caring
wife, Cassandra, who disappeared without a trace two years ago. She
would never have left him and their seven-year-old daughter Valentina of
her own free will -- or would she?
Reading with my book club-
The Legendary Inge by Kate Stradling
Plagued by misfortune, Ingrid Norling treks into
the woods to clear her head. She emerges a monster-slayer, the shaken
executioner of a creature so ferocious that even the king’s strongest
warriors could not destroy it. In a land that reveres swords and
worships strength, this accidental heroism earns Inge an audience at
court and a most ill-fated prize: King Halvard impulsively adopts her
and names her as his heir.
Under constant guard to prevent her
escape, Inge confronts the ignoble underbelly of the royal court: a
despotic king, a clueless princess, a proud warrior, and a dangerous
intrigue. As secrets unravel around her and the castle threatens to
become an elaborate deathtrap, Inge must keep her wits close and her
weapons closer. The monster in the woods was only the beginning.
